Goodbye 2010, hello 2011

I can hardly believe it is the end of the year - where did 2010 go? It was a busy year but every moment was memorable and so worth it. A new year brings so many things ... a new start .... new goals ... a new outlook ... new experiences - okay, so a lot of new things but it is also a time to reflect.

As a country, let us remember some poignant moments ... firstly on a sad note :

• On Saturday 4th September 2010 a shocking 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck Christchurch in the early hours of the morning. It was a sheer miracle that no-one died from the earthquake but the extensive damage to the City has been devastating and at a cost of around $2 billion, let alone the emotional cost to those living in Christchurch. Since then, there have been over 4000 after-shocks of varying magnitudes and sadly no-one knows when these after-shocks are going to end, not even the seismic experts.

On a more positive note, there has been much to celebrate as a nation in 2010 and some highlights include:

• The NZ All Whites qualified for The World Cup and were the only nation to go through the entire tournament unbeaten - woohoo !
• The All Blacks won every rugby game this year on the international circuit bar one (I find it very hard to admit that we lost to Australia but I also need to point out that we beat them the other 3 times during the year!)
• The Kiwi dollar is worth 50 pence sterling - the highest exchange rate we have had against the pound in about 30 years.
• NZ competed in the Commonwealth Games in Delhi, India in October. 71 commonwealth nations competed and New Zealand came 11th overall with a total medal count of 36 medals made up of 6 x Gold, 22 x Silver and 8 x Bronze.

And on a personal note for Josh, well where do we start ... let's talk about all the 'special' and 'quirky' names we still have for you including Josh-Malosh-Maloo or simply Joshie-Maloshie; button; my friend; gorgeous boy; poppet; monkey; or just simply Joshua.

As for this year ... well you have completed your first full year at Scots College and achieved SO MUCH; you know your 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 10 and 11 times-tables; you remain a very valued rugby player for the Mustangs and had a great first season at full tackle; you are now 1.350 tall and you weigh 25.1 kilos; you are amazing with a tennis racket in your hand and have a wicked backhand and can't wait to get to tennis practise each week; you are now a little Nipper for Surf Life-Saving and have the cap to prove it; you still love Mummy reading bedtime stories to you every night and will try every trick in the book so that Mummy keeps reading ... and reading; you do your homework each night reluctantly and still protest a little as you would way prefer to be outside playing; you can run faster than last year and more than proved that in the school athletics; your own reading is going ahead in leaps and bounds; you can tie your own school tie and are so proud of that; you are now so confident in the water and can swim 3 x 20 metre lengths of freestyle and backstroke at swimming training rather than only 1 x length like last year and are learning breaststroke; you are starting to be a little bit more adventurous with your food likes and dislikes and are now eating almost all your school lunch; you have discovered technology like there is no tomorrow and it is scary to see how you can juggle playing on the computer, the WII and the Nintendo; you and Daddy have discovered Indiana Jones on the WII and work so well as a team; you continue to beat Mummy at scooter racing although look out in 2011!; you really enjoy building and lighting a bonfire down at the beach and barbequing a sausage but you still need some lessons on how to truly toast a marshmellow over an open flame; you still love bouncing with Daddy on the trampoline; you have had your first try at public speaking and ended up in the semi-finals; you have discovered beyblades and will challenge anyone to a game; you love taking photos; you still have an innate sense of what is fair and not fair and are forever honest; you discovered chewing gum and what happens when you 'play' with it outside your mouth and ended up having to have a haircut!; you continue to love building things and astound us with your spatial creative awareness well beyond your years; you freely say "I love you" to both Mummy and Daddy and you still say you want to marry Mummy.

Yes Josh, it has been a good year. However, you still do not manage change very well as you are such a boy of routine; and this coming year we are going to help you develop more socially and emotionally so that making friends and mixing with your peers becomes easier.

But we have so much to be happy about, so much to be proud of and so much to be thankful for.

So Christmas is over, the year is at an end and summer is here. So let's go and have some fun ... we have a trip over to Martinborough planned and a week in a little bach up in the Coromandel; we have popcorn to eat and movies to see; we have lots of friends we want to catch up with; sausages and marshmallows to barbeque on the beach; sunsets to see but hopefully no sunrises because of lazy mornings with no set timetable; on sunny days we want to spend more time in the water than on land; and let's not forget discovering new walks and adventures up in the hills and all over Wellington with Huddy.

So to all our family and friends who have helped make 2010 special and memorable ... thank you. And as 2011 kicks off and the summer sun shines down upon us, let's look towards a great New Year of abundance, joy, good health and treasured moments - whatever they are, as long as they are special to YOU.

Goodnight 2010 .... Goodmorning 2011

The quote of the year - for Mummy anyway

Whilst driving along in the car, Josh was asking Mummy about her interior design work. I told him that my most important job, however, was being the very best Mummy to him that I could be. Joshua looked up at me and his reply ... "but Mummy, you already are".

Long may you believe and feel that Josh.

Side by Side

We love our little adventures. We put together a backpack of our togs and towels and a few refreshments because we never know where we will end up - and head off up into the bush. Today our out-and-back adventure took us nearly 3 hours.

School Report arrives in the mail

A very 'formal' envelope arrived in the mail today with Joshua's School Report for his first year at Scots College! In brief, all students are graded for their achievement in each subject. In addition to the Grade given, the teacher in charge of the class subject also gives a brief on each student. Grades are as follows:

E : Exemplary
C : Commendable
S : Satisfactory
M : More effort needed

Joshua's received four E's in English, Mathematics, Inquiry and Visual Arts. He received three C's in French, PE and Music.

Class Teacher's Comment (signed by Trudi Bell):
"Joshua has been an absolute pleasure to teach and has completed a super year's work in Year 2. It has been particularly pleasing to see his confidence continue to grow this semester, allowing him to participate more actively in the classroom. Challenging himself to take risks has made Joshua more resilient. He has a super work ethic and always works quietly and purposefully. This work ethic and his caring nature earned him a well-deserved Honours Card.

Joshua has progressed well across all curriculum areas. It is important that Joshua constantly monitors his reading to ensure that it makes sense and, if it doesn't, he needs to self-correct by re-reading.

Joshua behaves with integrity having a firm sense of fairness and honesty. He shows appreciation and respect towards his peers and will be a super role model for younger Junior Syndicate boys when he moves up to Year 3."

Principal's Comment (signed by Peter Cassie):
"Joshua has completed his year well and should feel justifiably proud of the progress and achievements he has made. He has embraced school life fully and has become increasingly confident, thus ensuring he is well prepared for the next level of his education.

Joshua is a most valued member of his generation who looks to get involved in all that is on offer. He will enjoy the further academic challenges and leadership opportunities available in 2011 as he prepares to move to the senior level of the Junior Syndicate. I am confident that Joshua will respond with the necessary enthusiasm and due diligence required."

Wow Josh, what a great Report - you should feel so proud of yourself.

Snapped - gotcha !

It was a gorgeous hot day and we had intended to simply stop at the beach on the way home to let Huddy cool off in the surf, but Josh decided to strip down to his undies and swim as well. Just as well he was wearing smart boxers !

Mummy, Daddy, wake up ... it's Christmas and Santa has been!

These were the words we awoke to at 6.10am this morning. Joshua literally ran into our bedroom, dragging his Santa sack behind him before leaping into our bed to start burying his head in the sack and dragging out all the little gifts from Santa. All I can say is that Josh must have been on his 'good boy' list because Santa has certainly listened to what Joshua had asked for and ... delivered ! We had one very excited boy in the house.

After that, Grandma arrived shortly after 8am and in-between fresh fruit salad and warm lemon & blueberry muffins fresh out of the oven, we all sat around the tree and opened up our presents. It was a paper frenzy and we all were very spoilt.

Grandma 'Santa' grooving to the musical hat !

Mummy 'almost' modelling a new t-shirt

Reading Daddy his Christmas Card ... when putting this card together I asked Josh to think of all the things he loved about his Dad and to simply write them down. This is what he wrote ... "when Daddy is wiggling his bum to hit the ball at golf; I love you playing with me; Your smile; Bouncing on the trampoline; Winning medals for me to keep; Going to the park" ... simple things but oh so meaningful.

Ooooh, Mummy gets a Christmas kiss

Conal and his daughter and 2 sons (Fionn & Ciaran) arrived mid-morning for round two of Christmas breakfast and the children ran 'wild' with Santa excitement as they exchanged presents and played together.

Fionn & Ciaren loved their giant sized tennis-come-soccer balls !

A quick clean-up before dropping Grandma home to then head up the coast to join Karen and her whanau for an afternoon in the sun of swimming and playing in the sun. I might add here that we were blessed with a gorgeous day of 24 degrees and a blue cloudless sky - thank you Wellington! Karen and her family had also laid a Hangi which is a traditional NZ Maori method of cooking food using heated rocks buried in the ground.

We would love to have stayed longer but we then went to see Uncle Apples, Margaret & Sarah and thoroughly enjoyed a leisurely drink under the umbrella in their lovely garden.


Uncle Apples, Aunty Margaret & Sarah - opening a remote helicopter (I am not sure whether the 'big' boy or the 'little' boy was more excited with this gift!)

Home to then panic a little because it was time to cook our own traditional Christmas dinner for 7 - my Mum joined us along with Johnny & Maritess and Paul Grimwood, another very dear friend.

Needless to say, we were all late to bed tonight .... Joshua certainly went to sleep with a big smile on his face. Mummy and Daddy reflected together on the day ... and felt very lucky and blessed to still have 'Grandma' with us to share Christmas and also all the friends we were able to share a little slice of the festivities with today, whether in person or by phone, email or text. However, we also feel very 'distant' from our family in the UK and Canada and although it is always lovely to speak to them all on the telephone, we do feel the distance and in the perfect world, it would be wonderful for us all to be together ... maybe another year.

However, we have so much to be thankful for, so thank you Santa and thank you everyone who helped make our Christmas day a very warm and a most special and happy one.

Christmas Eve

Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse "

Well, not quite in our household. You could definitely hear Joshua and feel his excitement! We had a few visitors in the early evening which added to the excitement - Aunt Rosie and Aunty Jellybean - and so the giving and receiving started early. Certainly Aunt Rosie got the 'bulls eye' as Josh leaped into the air when he opened her parcel to reveal the latest Star Wars Lego Game for the WII.

Cuddles and gifts with Aunty Jellybean

A WII game from Aunty Rosie - that has got to be the best gift !

As soon as they left, we made SANTA cookies and cut up carrots for the reindeer. The final touch was a tall glass of milk.

And then at what would usually be bedtime, we jumped into the car in our pyjamas and picked up Grandma and then drove into town to see a few houses that were lit up for Christmas - one in particular was very special. An ice-cream on the way home and then it was time to get to bed as by this stage it was very late at 10pm, dark and definitely time for Santa to start his rounds - oh the excitement !

Good night everyone, sleep tight, dream of Santa and Rudolf and his team of reindeer flying across the night sky ... and let's just see what surprises there will be in the morning.

Wow, this house looked amazing - and the colours just kept changing !

Beep ... you've got mail !

I am sure we all remember when we were children as to how important we felt when we received mail - personally addressed to us. It is no different for our children of today. Thank you Grandma & Grandad for Joshua's very own Christmas card this year !

Joshua also received a thank you card in the mail from his teacher, Mrs Bell, for the bag of Christmas goodies we put together for her. How special is that ?!?!

The bestest Christmas Present

Tonight Enzo came over to see Joshua for an early Christmas dinner - the boys exchanged Christmas presents and cards and had a very special time together. It is sometimes quite emotional to see the bond these 2 boys have.

Look who flew into Town!

Yes, Steve - all the way from Bellingham, USA ! The only sadness was that Kathy (or as Josh calls her .. "Koffee") was not hidden in his suitcase - Mummy was forever hopeful until she opened the door. We had a lovely night and Steve & Koffee gave Josh a game of Q-Bitz - an amazing challenging and creative game using fine motor skills - so perfect for Joshua. Somehow Koffee always gets it right - she always did even when we lived next door and we will never forget how Joshua 'lived' there during the day of his very first week with us.

One day, Koffey & Steve are going to open their door in Bellingham and find us all standing on their 'welcome' mat. We so look forward to that day and miss them very much.

A rare photo of the 3 of us taken by Steve - Mummy is usually behind the camera!

Hello - is that you Santa?

Lots of excitement in our house this evening ... guess who phoned us? Yes ... Santa ! Lucky that Josh was prepared this year and had made a list of what he would like for Christmas.

Click on the link below to hear Joshua's request to Santa - you have to listen carefully as Josh was so excited (and of course he had his list in front of him!) that he spoke very fast ! I think Santa is going to be busy this Christmas - however let's not forget what Santa said ... "remember Joshua, Christmas is about being with the people you love; presents are, of course, lots of fun but it is family and friends that make Christmas really special".

http://www.santacall.co.nz/playmessage.aspx?id=FFB01566F9EBA89E

Our Little Life-Saver ... in training

Whilst Tennis is our chosen sport this summer, we also decided to join Worser Bay Life Saving Club and become a 'Little Nipper' - it brings back so many memories for Mummy when she was a little girl and patrolled the beaches of Hawkes Bay - such a wonderful way to spend the summer, especially through the teenage years.

'Little Nippers' meet every Sunday afternoon from 2pm to 4pm. At this stage the emphasis is on safety and fun but at the same time the Little Nippers learn some basic water respect and participate in flag, beach and water races and competitions.

It is going to be a great summer !

Legs straight, toes curled ready for a fast take-off, elbows flat on the ground, eyes up

All ready in a row

And they are off - go Josh, dive for the flag !

Josh on video

Josh participated in a 5-day Tennis Academy from 9am to midday in the September school holidays at Scots. They have since loaded a video onto their web site and guess what ... Joshua is on it!

Log onto the following link; then click once on the tennis picture (second one down on the right); turn up the volume and watch Josh's wicked backhand !

http://www.scotscollege.school.nz/sport-centre/academies/holiday-programmes

Building at the beach

We joined up with friends out at Paekakariki today and found a lovely little estuary where there were lots of washed up logs and bracken. Josh has always loved building and creating so it came as no surprise that he became the site manager and busily ordered both Mummy and Daddy around to collect wood and logs whilst he 'built' a dam. One day Josh, I am sure you are going to use those creative visual talents you have ... and I wonder what you will create.

The last day of the first year at Scots College

Today was the last day at School for 2010 and all the boys were very happy indeed. It was quite a casual day and the boys got to meet their teacher for next year. Well, we were overjoyed to find out that Mrs Bell who has been Joshua's teacher this year is moving up to teach Year 3 next year and so we have her again. I could have wept joyful tears ... Mrs Bell just seems to 'get' Josh and has been a truly wonderful teacher for him ... what a fantastic foundation for Josh to be able to have her for a second year.

2010 has been a BIG year for Joshua. He has been up on stage 6 times and there is so much to congratulate him for :

• He was the first in his class to receive his Literacy Award
• He was runner-up in the class School Athletics
• He was runner-up in the class School Swimming Champs
• He was a finalist in the Speech Competition for Years 1-3
• He won an IPOD Touch for selling the most cookbooks in the Junior School Years 1-8
• He won the 'People' category in the Photographic Competition and came third overall in Years 1-3.

Yes, it has been a huge year and Joshua has achieved so much in the classroom; he has yet to make that special connection with a 'buddy' but that will happen in time.

Josh, we are so very very proud of you.

PS When Joshua came home from school, there was a surprise waiting on his bed - a card from Mummy & Daddy recording his amazing year ... and a gift of a WII game.

Scots Prize-Giving

Gosh, what a formal affair ! All parents were invited to join their sons in the Wellington Town Hall at 10am. All boys were seated whilst the brass band piped in all the teachers who walked in pairs wearing their graduation gowns.

The prize-giving was so well organised with some astounding musical performances by some of the older boys, and of course the brass band, and then the prize-giving itself which really applied more for Years 5-8.

Mr Cassie delivered a most heartfelt speech and you could have heard a pin drop. Certainly the prize giving and the speeches were all about the boys and we left the Hall feeling so proud to be part of such a special college. Scots College ... it's about learning - for life.

It's over Spencer, our first year - let's go party !!

Scots College Photography Competition

Scots ran a Photography Competition and invited all boys aged 5 to 12 to enter. Whilst it was voluntary, Josh was keen to participate (with a 'little persuasion') and competed against boys in Years 1-3. There were 3 categories as follows:

Thing - Joshua chose to photograph a peonie flower in a vase at home.

People - He took a photo of the many spectators at the Auckland Marathon

Animal - no surprises here, Joshua photographed Hudson

Joshua took hundreds (literally!) of photographs and he found it hard to choose his final 3 - but the choices were all his, although parents were allowed to help mount the photos onto the board.

And the result ... Joshua came first in the PEOPLE division and third overall. It was a great accolade at the end of the school year. Mummy has a feeling that she may need to keep an eye on her camera as Josh is now super-keen to snap photos whenever he can !!

A Beautiful Evening

We packed up our portable barbeque and headed over to Mt Vic early evening and found a remote hill to toast a few marshmellows, cook a sausage, play hide and seek in the long grass and have running and roly-poly races down the hill as the sun set. Oh bliss ... this is what summer is all about!